phono_phono - s/t

absinth
#014

phono_phono (I believe it’s the name of the ensemble as well as the album) is a trio with Magda Mayas (piano, synthesizer), Sabine Vogel (flutes, electronics) and Michael Renkel (guitar, electronics). Though it’s nowhere indicated, I get the impression that Renkel is the driving force behind at least the suite presented here which, though clearly consisting of a great deal of improvisation, just as clearly has a prearranged structure of sorts. The seven tracks find four longish ones (about nine to twenty minutes) separated by three “interludes” in the 2-3 minute range. Things drift toward the quiet and spacious sometimes, as in the opening piece, edging into a territory with Feldman-esque overtones, resembling that composer’s work for semi-similar trios (flute, piano percussion). The interludes are like cool, misty ponds separating the more tangled, irregular wooded patches between them, very lovely in and of themselves. Much of the suite is languidly paced, using generally consonant tones (even the clicks, bangs and whirs don’t read as especially harsh) but things gradually pick up tempo, real or implied, as the piece develops. The third section, “Silent Bombing”, is more rambunctious, bumpier. Renkel’s guitar, while always retaining its recognizability as such, gets a bit frantic, Vogel’s flute more breathily urgent. Here and elsewhere, the coherence of the three musicians into a balanced whole is very impressive. Indeed, “balanced” fits the trio very well; there’s an enjoyable sense of steady, serene creation throughout. The final interlude sets some rhythmic ideas in motion that surface several minutes into the final movement, the sort of rapidly flitting sounds that recall Gunter Muller. That addition, plus some of the rougher plucking and thwacking to be found on the disc, does its part to make the last track the highlight of the album, a really strong, vital piece. One hopes this trio remains together and takes off from here.

Good stuff.

absinth